Elizabeth Warren discusses Armenian-American concerns with the Weekly

YEREVAN, AUGUST 28, ARMENPRESS: In this interview with Armenian Weekly assistant editor Nanore Barsoumian, Warren talks about her guiding principles, and her vision for the nation. In that context, she also addresses issues that are important to the Armenian-American community, including justice for the Armenian Genocide, and freedom for the people of Nagorno-Karabagh. As Armenpress reports citing The Armenian Weekly, Elizabeth Warren, the Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate in Massachusetts, prides herself on her middle class roots. Warren has made it her mission to fight for financial protection for the middle class against banks and financial institutions, having herself experienced economic hardship as a young girl: Her father suffered a heart attack when she was only 12. Soon, he was demoted to a less-paying job at the store where he worked. Warren's mother had to find employment to keep up with the bills, and Elizabeth followed suit, waitressing at her aunt's restaurant at 13. A Harvard law professor, much of Warren's career has focused on the effect of bankruptcy on people. Following the 2008 financial crisis, Warren served as chair of the Congressional Oversight Panel for Troubled Asset Relief Program, working to hold Wall Street accountable. She proved instrumental in the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The Weekly.- The U.S. House overwhelmingly adopted a resolution in December 2011, calling on the Turkish government to honor the right of their Christian population to worship freely, and urging them to return confiscated Christian churches to their rightful owners. Similar legislation is currently pending in the Senate, introduced by Sen. Brown. Many of Massachusetts' Armenian community received refuge in America from the horrors of the Armenian Genocide. Will you support pressing Turkey to return stolen Christian and other religious church properties? E.W.-Yes, I support efforts urging the Turkish government to return religious sites to their rightful owners.As a country, we believe in religious freedom, at home and around the world. I also appreciate the efforts of the Armenian-American community and Senators of both parties to bring awareness and recognition to this issue and to the genocide. If we do not recognize the horrors of the past, we risk repeating those horrors in the future. The genocide of 1.5 million Armenians from 1915 to 1923 is an atrocity that we must never forget. The Weekly.-The Massachusetts legislature recently recognized the democratic, free-market oriented society of the Nagorno Karabagh Republic. After overcoming the brutal legacy of Stalin's arbitrary decision toplace Karabagh under Soviet Azerbaijani administration, the population of Nagorno-Karabagh continues to struggle against Azerbaijan’scampaign of blockades, ethnic cleansing, and outright military aggression. Will you support the Nagorno Karabagh Republic’s right to independence? E.W.-Yes, I support Nagorno Karabagh's right to self-determination, and I hope for progress through the efforts of the Minsk Group and the Armenian government to seek a peaceful outcome. Too many lives have been lost already.